The next few weeks had flown by for the couple. Zac had continued his therapy and was feeling a lot better. Vanessa had been working on a cover shoot for a magazine. The couple felt like their lives had improved so much over the last few months and were so happy that they had each other. One night, Vanessa unlocked the front door and walked into the house. Her cover shoot had gone longer than planned and she was exhausted.
"Baby, I'm home" Vanessa said.
Zac walked into the living room and went over to his girlfriend and kissed her lips.
"How was your shoot?" Zac asked.
"Exhausting and I don't feel very good" Vanessa said putting her purse down.
"What's wrong?" Zac said.
"I just don't feel like myself. I feel tired and hungry all the time. I feel like I'm gaining weight. Maybe I'm coming down with the flu" Vanessa said.
Zac put his hand to Vanessa's head.
"You are a little warm. Go take a hot shower and get into bed. I'll make my famous sick food specialty" Zac said.
"Put extra chicken in my soup please" Vanessa said knowing what her boyfriend was going to cook.
Zac smiled.
"You got it. Now, go upstairs" Zac said.
Vanessa walked upstairs and took a shower. Zac went into the kitchen and started making Vanessa's soup. Ten minutes later, Zac finished cooking the soup and put it into a bowl and carried it upstairs to the bedroom. Zac walked into the bedroom and saw Vanessa snuggled into the bed. He brought the soup over to her.
"How are you feeling?" Zac asked.
"Gross" Vanessa said.
Zac smiled.
"Try that and see if it makes you feel a little better" Zac said.
Vanessa took a spoonful of soup and put it into her mouth. She swallowed it and sighed in delight.
"Thank you baby" Vanessa said.
"No problem. Do you need anything else?" Zac asked.
Vanessa shook her head.
"No, can you just stay with me?" Vanessa asked.
Zac smiled.
"Of course" Zac said.
Vanessa ate her soup. Once she finished, she looked at Zac.
"That was really good. Your soup has gotten a lot better" Vanessa said.
"Was it bad before?" Zac asked.
"No, it just needed some minor adjustments" Vanessa giggled.
Zac smiled.
"Maybe just a couple. I love you" Zac said.
"I love you too" Vanessa said.
"Get some sleep okay? The more rest you get, the faster you will get well" Zac said tucking Vanessa into the bed.
Vanessa nodded. Zac kissed her head softly.
"Good night sweetheart" Zac said.
"Good night" Vanessa said.
Zac got off the bed and turned off the light. The next morning, Vanessa opened her eyes and immediately felt nauseous. She got up quickly and went to the bathroom and kneeled down in front of the toilet and released the remains of her stomach. Zac woke up to hearing Vanessa throwing up. He got up and walked into the bathroom quickly. Zac sat down next to Vanessa and rubbed her back soothingly.
"It's okay baby, just relax" Zac said.
A couple minutes later, Vanessa moved away from the toilet. She got up and brushed her teeth and washed her face.
"Are you okay?" Zac asked.
"I don't feel well" Vanessa said.
"Maybe you should call your doctor" Zac said.
Vanessa nodded.
"Come on, get back in bed" Zac said taking her hand in his.
The couple walked back into the bedroom. Vanessa got into bed and picked up her phone. She made an appointment to go see her doctor for that afternoon. An hour later, Zac came back into the bedroom to check on Vanessa.
"How are you feeling baby?" Zac asked.
"Tired" Vanessa said.
Zac put his hand against her forehead.
"You feel a little warm still, but let's see what your doctor thinks" Zac said.
Vanessa nodded.
"We have to go in a little bit babe" Zac said.
"Okay" Vanessa said.
Vanessa got out of bed and got dressed. She then walked downstairs and went over to Zac and wrapped her arms around him.
"Are you ready to go?" Zac asked.
"Yeah" Vanessa said.
"Okay, let's go see what this thing is" Zac said taking Vanessa's hand in his.
The couple left the house. Zac drove to the doctor's office and parked his car. Zac and Vanessa got out of the car and walked into the office. Vanessa signed herself in and then sat next to Zac. Zac put his arm around Vanessa and kissed her head softly. A couple minutes later a woman with long dark brown hair, who was probably in her mid-thirties, came into the room with a file.
"Vanessa?" the nurse called.
The couple stood up and followed the nurse into a room where Vanessa's vitals were taken. They then were escorted to a room. The nurse closed the door behind them.
"Vanessa, what seems to be the problem today?" the nurse asked.
"I think I have the flu" Vanessa said softly.
"Do you have a fever?" the nurse asked.
"She's a little warm" Zac answered for Vanessa.
"Does your body ache?" the nurse asked.
"A little bit" Vanessa said.
"Have you been sexually active in the last month?" the nurse asked.
Vanessa blushed and nodded. The nurse wrote all these notes down and then looked at the couple.
"Please change into this gown and I'll go let Dr. Herron know that you are here" the nurse said handing Vanessa a gown.
"Alright" Vanessa said.
The nurse left the room. Vanessa changed into the gown and sat on the table. Zac looked at his girlfriend and smiled.
"Why did she ask me if I was sexually active?" Vanessa asked.
"It's protocol babe. They have to ask. When I go to the doctor they ask me too" Zac said.
"It's just weird" Vanessa said.
There was a knock on the door and a tall, slender woman, who was probably in her mid forties came into the room.
"Hi Vanessa. How are you?" Dr. Herron asked.
"I feel lousy" Vanessa said.
"What's going on?" Dr. Herron asked as she washed her hands.
"I think I am getting the flu" Vanessa said.
Vanessa described her symptoms to her doctor. Dr. Herron looked at the couple.
"Have you been sexually active in the last few weeks?" Dr. Herron asked.
"Yes, why do I keep getting asked that?" Vanessa asked.
"I'm just trying to figure out what's going on, that's all. I'm trying to rule out the things that this could be" Dr. Herron said.
Vanessa nodded.
"When was your last period?" Dr. Herron asked.
"Last month" Vanessa said.
"When are you supposed to have your next one?" Dr. Herron asked.
Vanessa sat and thought about it and she looked up.
"I'm late" Vanessa said worriedly.
Zac put his hand on Vanessa's knee and looked at her. Vanessa looked at Zac and then back at Dr. Herron.
"I want you to take a pregnancy test okay? Just to see if you are or not" Dr. Herron said.
Vanessa nodded. Dr. Herron opened a drawer and pulled out a package and handed it to Vanessa.
"I'll be back in a few minutes to read it" Dr. Herron said leaving the room.
Zac looked at Vanessa. Vanessa looked at Zac.
"I'm so scared" Vanessa said.
"Baby, I know you are scared but you need to take the test. We won't know unless you do it" Zac said.
Vanessa nodded. Zac kissed her lips softly. Vanessa went into the bathroom and took the test. Two minutes later, she came out and handed the test to the nurse and walked back into the exam room. Zac smiled. Vanessa walked back to her seat and sat down next to her boyfriend.
"What if I am pregnant? What are we going to do?" Vanessa asked.
"We will have to take it day by day Van. Everything will be okay. I will support you no matter what" Zac said entwining his fingers with hers.
Vanessa sighed nervously. Zac kissed Vanessa's cheek softly.
"Just relax" Zac said.
A few minutes later, there was a knock on the door. Dr. Herron came into the room and smiled.
"What is the verdict?" Vanessa asked.
"You are pregnant. Congratulations" Dr. Herron said.
Zac looked at Vanessa and knew that she was in shock. He thanked Dr. Herron and the couple left the office and got into the car. Zac started driving and occasionally looked at Vanessa.
"Are you okay?" Zac asked.
There was silence. Zac nodded and continued to drive home. Once he pulled into the driveway and parked the car, Zac looked at Vanessa.
"Van" Zac said.
Vanessa looked at Zac with tears in her eyes.
"How can I be okay Zac? How? We have our careers, our lives, we aren't married...How the hell am I supposed to be okay after receiving news like that?" Vanessa cried.
The couple walked into the house. Vanessa went upstairs and walked into the bedroom and closed the door. Zac sighed. He put his hands on his face. Zac then picked up his phone and dialed his little brother's number.
"Hello?" Dylan answered.
"Hey, what are you doing right now?" Zac asked.
"Nothing, why what's up?" Dylan asked.
"I have a big problem and need a guy to talk to" Zac said.
"I'm on my way" Dylan said.
The two brothers hung up the phone. Ten minutes later, the doorbell rang. Zac walked to the front door and opened it.
"Hey man, what's this problem? Are you guys fighting?" Dylan asked.
"Let's go to the backyard. Van is upstairs" Zac said.
The two men walked out to the backyard and sat down at a table.
"Alright, what's going on?" Dylan asked.
"So Van has been feeling sick the past couple of days and I took her to the doctor today and found out some news" Zac started.
"What's wrong?" Dylan asked.
Zac took a deep breath and looked at his brother.
"She's pregnant" Zac said.
"What?" Dylan asked in shock.
"Yeah. I don't know what to do Dyl. I don't know how to handle a situation like this" Zac said.
Dylan sighed.
"All you can do is be supportive Zac. She's probably scared to death and in complete shock, I'm guessing" Dylan said.
Zac nodded.
"I just feel like everything is spinning" Zac said.
"Don't let her to see you like that, either. You have to be calm for the sake of her emotional state" Dylan said.
Zac nodded.
"Congratulations?" Dylan asked slowly.
Zac smiled.
"Thanks Dylan" Zac said.
"Hey, if you need to talk, you can always come to me. I'm a good listener" Dylan said.
Zac smiled. The two brothers stood up and hugged. Dylan left the house shortly after. Zac closed the front door behind him and sighed. He walked upstairs and saw that the bedroom door was still closed. Zac put his ear to the door and heard his girlfriend sobbing. He knocked on the door softly.
"Van, can I come in?" Zac asked.
Zac heard a faint "yes" and walked into the bedroom. He looked at Vanessa and saw her lying in a ball. Zac sat on the edge of the bed carefully.
"Baby, look at me please" Zac said.
Vanessa looked up at her boyfriend with tears in her eyes.
"Talk to me" Zac said.
"How are we going to do this? We are young and supposed to be focused on our careers" Vanessa cried.
"Hey listen to me okay? We are going to get through this. I know that it's shocking, but it's happening babe. Our careers can be put on hold for a while" Zac said.
Vanessa sniffled.
"How can you be so calm about this?" Vanessa asked.
"One of us has to be. I know we are young, but we are ready to do this" Zac said.
Vanessa took a deep breath and released it.
"I just don't know how we are going to be able to do this" Vanessa said.
"We will find a way. Everything is going to be okay. This is just a bump in the road that we have to deal with" Zac said.
"Are you upset with me?" Vanessa asked.
Zac's face softened and he looked at his girlfriend.
"No baby. This isn't your fault. Things like this just happen. The condom probably broke and we didn't see it" Zac said.
Vanessa sighed.
"I love you so much and I hate to see you like this. We will figure everything out. I promise" Zac said.
"I love you too" Vanessa said.
"I'm not leaving either so you are stuck with me. I'm not going to let you go through this alone" Zac said.
Vanessa nodded.
"So, let's not cry, even though we both want to because our lives just got a little bit more interesting okay? Let's celebrate that we are going to have a new addition to our family" Zac said.
Vanessa nodded.
"Okay" Vanessa said.
"Come here" Zac said.
Vanessa sat up and moved over to where Zac was sitting.
"We are going to be okay" Zac said.
"Okay" Vanessa said.
The rest of the day, the couple let the news of Vanessa's pregnancy sink in. They couldn't believe that they were going to be parents.